From the serial numbers I have seen, it looks as though close to a million were made.* The Princess was available with a 2- or 3-inch barrel, in nickelįinish only. The Princess was manufactured from 1957 through approximately 1985, but was only imported into the United States from 1965 through 1969-another victim of the GunĬontrol Act of 1968.

The barrel has a steel liner and the cylinder is made of steel. That the strongest one, Zamak 2, is substantially stronger than commonly-used high strength aluminum alloys. However, it has been pointed out to me by an engineer friend that Zamak is a family of alloys and

Pete Dickey’s article in the September 1982 issue of American Rifleman states that the Princess’s frame is die cast from “Zamak,” a zinc-based alloy which incorporatesĪluminum, magnesium, and copper. Johnson-style transfer bar and a rebounding firing pin. It has coil springs instead of flat springs and features an Iver Rossi firearms were later imported by Interarms, but I don’t believe they ever imported the Princess.Įxternally the Princess is a copy of the third model Smith & Wesson Ladysmith, but the lockwork is quite different. Most examples I have seen are stamped FIREARMS INT’L CORP., WASHINGTON, D.C. I find the gun first listed in Gun Digest in 1966, where it is described as the Rossi Ladysmith, imported by Benet Arms. I could find no mention of older Rossi firearms, such as the Princess, on the company’s U It does not appear in the Bluebook of Gun Values or the Standard Catalog of Firearms. There is virtually nothing in print about the Rossi Princess revolver.

Rossi serial number list